Destination file characters too long (File names) , while copying from one external to another

Question

I have a external my book fat32 formated and a new mybook ntfs formated external as well.  Now when I copy my files from the fat32 to the ntfs external all files copy fine but some give that destination location file characters are too long, meaning that the file names are too long.  Now I could change the file names but that would conflict with programs that need that file name.  I am using vista ultimate and would like to copy all the files over from the fat32 to ntfs so I can reformat the fat32 to ntfs.  The files got on the ntfs from a simple drag and drop from my IDE NTFS internal hard drive.
I hope you guys to tell me what to do.
Thank you :)

Answer 1

Here's the fix....for error message "your file name is too long to be copied, deleted, renamed, moved" :
1.   problem is this: the "file name" has a limit on number of characters.....the sum of characters really includes the entire path name; you gotta shorten it first (i.e, if the total number of characters in the file name + Path name are over the
limit, the error appears).  The deeper your file folder sub levels are, the more this problem will come up, especially when you copy to a subfolder of a subfolder/subfolder of another path ...adds to character limit)
2.  How do you know which combined file names + path names are too long if  you are in the  middle of a copy operation and this error pops up?  Some files copied but the "long files error message" says "skip" or "cancel" ... but not which
files are the "too long" ones.  If you hit "skip" or "cancel" the "too long" files are left behind...but are mixed in with non-offender "good" "short name" files.   Sorting thru 1000s of "good" files to find a few "bad" ones manually is impractical.
3.   Here's how you sort out the "bad" from the "good":
4.    Let's say you want to copy a folder ..."Football" ...that has five layers of subfolders; each subfolder contains numerous files:
  C:/1 Football / 2 teams/ 3 players/ 4 stats/ 5 injuriessidelineplayerstoolong 
       There are five levels root "1 football" with subfolders  2, 3, 4 and lastly "5 injuries"
5.    Use "cut" and "paste"  (for example to backup all five levels to a new backup folder):
       select "1 football" ....cut....select target folder....paste 
       ("cut" command means as the files are copied to the target destination, the file is deleted from the source location)
      Hint: avoid "cut" and "paste" to a target folder that is itself a sub/sub/sub folder ...that compounds the "characters over the limit" problem ...because the characters in the sub/sub/sub folder are included in the "file name
character limit"...instead "paste" to a C:/ root directory.
       Suppose in the middle of this operation...error pops up: "5 files have file names that are too long"  Skip or cancel?
       select "skip"  ...and let operation finish
6.    Now go back and look at the source location: since the software allows only the "good" "short name" files to be copied (and because you "skipped" the "bad" "Long name" files so they are not copied or deleted) ...all that remains
in the source location are the "bad" "long name files" (because "good" ones were deleted from the source location after the "cut" operation...the bad ones stick out like a sore thumb.
7.   You will find ....all that remains in source folders are: the "bad" "too long" files; in this example the "bad" file is in level 5:
      C:/ 1 football / 2 teams /3 players /4 stats /5 injuriessidelineplayerstoolong
8.   select folder 5 injuriessidelineplayerstoolong (that's right...select folder, not file) gotta rename the folder first.
9.  hit F2 rename folder..folder name highlighted...delete some of the letters in the folder name:
       like this:   5 injuriessidelineplayers  ....you should delete 'toolong'....from the folder name
10.  then go into folder 5....and do the same operation ...with the too long file name:
        hit F2 rename file....file name hightlighted...delete some of the letters
           like this:  injuriessidelineplayers.....you should delete 'toolong' from the file name
11.  Now..."cut and paste"  the renamed file to the target backup folder.  
The Error message will pop up again if you missed any "bad" files....for example, it will indicate "5 files too long" ....then repeat process 5 times until you fix all of them
12.     Finally, copy the target destination files back to the source location (when you are certain all source location file folder locations are empty)